Can Hope Even Fly?
by Ava Miranda Dakedavra
Summary: "A demigod, a super soldier, a living legend who kind of lives up to the legend, a man with breath-taking anger management issues and a couple of master assassins help out this wizard who's best friend was kidnapped. The kidnapper thinks he's got a hold on everybody." "Would you care to tell him the punch-line, Steve?" "I will - and trust me, it's a real kicker." Fixing Chapter 3
1. Request Granted

"_**You really have got a lid on it, haven't you? What's your secret? Mellow jazz? Bongo drums? Huge bag of weed?" **_**~ Tony Stark to Bruce Banner, **_**Avengers**_

* * *

The bookstore smelled like the books it held, musty and full of stories. Dust should've been an issue, considering how many books there were just in the front, not to mention the ones stored downstairs in the basement/reading area/just-leave-your-kids-here-we're-pretty-sure-they-won't-kill-themselves-with-these-blocks area, but it was easily managed. The only windows were in the front, proclaiming that _Better Than Before Bookstore_ was currently closed for the evening, a small cat perched in the flat above it in the window seat, watching as a bug tapped stupidly against the glass.

The woman winced at the state of her living room, biting her lower lip as she surveyed the sheaves of paper lying about, along with her collection of nearly empty coffee mugs that littered the room. She sighed and half-heartedly flung a pillow onto her sectional couch before glancing at her watch and groaning, picking up the tiny kitten and carrying it through the living room, pass the kitchen and into her bedroom, plopping the grey ball of fur and leopard spots onto a pillow and stepping into the bathroom, roughly running a brush through her dark brown "curls." She sighed and tied her hair back, pecking the kitten on her head as she pulled on a jean jacket.

"Bye Bast, I'll see you later," she said as she shut her bedroom door, pausing at the kitchen to flip through some of her mail before continuing on to the front door, stepping down the stairs and through her shop, where she stepped out onto the shiny sidewalk and smiled as she saw the figure down the concrete quicken his pace, already speaking.

"Oh good, you're late too!" he told her, making her laugh and grin at him as she walked towards him, passing by a bar.

"You've made me lose my punctuality!" she grinned before gasping as somebody grabbed her waist and tugged her back into a darkened alley, something shiny and cold pressing into her neck, "Harry!"

"Hermione!" he yelled back, still a distance away as he began to run.

"This will pay nicely," the man chuckled, "You and Fury will pay, Potter! You will both pay _dearly!_"

"Hermione!" Harry yelled again as he heard her scream, skidding in front of the alley with a stick lighting his way, blinking and gaping at the empty space, "Hermione?"

* * *

"_Nicholas Fury is director of S.H.I.E.L.D, although not much can be said of neither the man nor the organization, due to both being top secret government information. Although I hear he lives in a metal floating thing called a 'Helicarrier.' Shouldn't be too hard to find, I suspect."_

"Anything else, Luna?" Harry fretted.

"_No, not much,_" she said airily before looking worried, "_Harry, shouldn't we call in Aurors?_"

"No," Harry frowned, "I'm not _that_ desperate to ask for his help, Luna."

"_Perhaps the D.A?_" she asked, "_Seamus is rather bored, only got scorched once this week, and he'd love to have something to do._"

"Ahh – I dunno, let me talk to this Fury guy and we'll see," Harry winced, "But I think Hermione's bookstore could use some looking after. And her cat."

"_Alright, I'll convince him,_" Luna nodded, sparks spitting up from the fireplace as she did so, "_Please stay safe, Harry._"

"Alright, Luna," he nodded before she left from the Floo, sighing as he ran a hand through his hair and grabbed his wand. "Don't worry, Hermione, I won't let you down."

* * *

"Augh!" Hermione growled as she was tossed onto the concrete, glaring up at the man as the door slid shut, light pooling from under the door.

"Oh, poor little girly," he chuckled darkly, stepping towards her as she growled again, lying on her side with her arms and legs tied behind her, "Nobody here to save you?"

The door suddenly opened and Hermione felt a little bubble of hope in her chest before it was quickly doused, a bald man with a scarred face standing in the doorway, the light behind him making strange shadows on his face.

"Keep her alive," he ordered the man before smirking down at her, "But just barely."

He nodded, turning back to her as the door shut, "You look like a screamer." He stepped towards her, his face dark as she glared and brought her legs around, kicking him bellow the belt as he doubled over, anger showing in his eyes once he could manage it as his hand reached out, howling when she clamped down on it until blood began to pour, making her wipe her mouth on her shoulder and smirk victoriously at him. "Oh, you think we're done?"

"Well I hardly think you'll have too much luck getting any farther," she spat, quite literally, at him. "What kind of girl do you think I am? I never get raped on the second kidnapping. What have those _awful_ rumors done to me?"

"I'll wear you down," he growled.

"I highly _doubt it_!" she said before swinging her legs up and hitting him once more, this time with enough force to make him kneel to the ground as she jumped up with some difficulty, standing over him before wincing and head-butting him in the back of the head. He groaned and plummeted to the ground, where Hermione sat back down and grabbed his shoe to tug him slowly to the door, looking through his pockets until she found the small knife. What he had that for, she didn't want to know, she decided as she cut away her bindings and stood, kicking him out of the way and easing the door open, knowing that she was in the lowest level.

Just a few more steps to the door….

An arm swept around her waist, picking her up as she fought and squirmed, clawing at his arm and kicking, "You didn't think he was the only one, did you, Mudblood?"

"Let go of me – let _go of me!_" she demanded as she was led back into her room, the unconscious guard pushed out as the door shut once more.

* * *

Fury glared at the young man looking pleadingly at him, arching an eyebrow back at him as the Avengers walked by and stood awkwardly in place, glancing between their director and the newcomer.

"Tell me again how you got on my airship?" Fury asked, frowning as he crossed his arms over his chest.

The man sighed, running his hands through shaggy black hair, "I'm magic."

"Oh, what a strange coincidence," he said dully, "Stark's the sugar plum fairy and Barton is the elf. What're you? Gnome?"

"Okay, can we please _stop_ with the Legolas jokes?" Clint asked irritably as Tony chuckled, Natasha patting his head sympathetically, "They're getting really old."

"Alright, Katniss," Tony grinned as he glared at him, Steve arching an eyebrow at them before stepping forward.

"How _did_ you get here?"

"I Apparated," he said with a frown, "You need to put up Apparation wards or else everybody will be popping in whenever they want."

"Ah-hah," Tony said in interest before turning to Bruce and whispering, "Somebody's had one too many midnight margaritas."

"Tony," Bruce admonished with a frown.

"Oh, you don't believe me?" the man asked, shrugging off his jacket before pointing a stick at it, "Wingardium Leviosa." He released it, the jacket floating above the ground, flying when he moved his stick as they gaped at him. After a few moments, he grabbed it back and shrugged the jacket on as he put the wand back in his pocket.

"So, magic?" Tony asked with raised eyebrows.

"I need your help," he pleaded with Fury, "My friend, Hermione, she's been kidnapped."

"What's your name?" he asked, still frowning.

"Harry – Harry Potter," he said.

"And your friend's name?"

"Hermione Granger."

"Is she magic too?"

"Yeah – definitely, practically saved my life for years," he fixed his glasses back on his face, accidentally showing off a lightning bolt scar in the process.

"Good, now I've got jurisdiction," Fury smirked, "Tell us what you know, Potter."

* * *

"Alright, here we've got guards there, and there, and there – and oh, some scary looking baddies over here too," Tony pointed at a map, held up by push-pins as Bruce wrote on it, circling things and looking as if they were making a football play and were explaining it to their team. "According to some surveillance footage which I – heh – hacked, there's a pile of what appears to be dead bodies at _this_ point," he pointed to a small room on the lower level.

Harry paled and sunk lower in his seat, although Bruce waved his worries away, "No, no, they're all male, and all guards."

Harry felt himself grinning despite himself, running his hands over his face tiredly, "Go Hermione, give them hell."

"What would Roshbovine want with her anyway, Potter?" Fury asked, seated at the head of the table, "What's so special about her?"

"She's smart – a pretty powerful witch, a great fighter and…my best friend," Harry shrugged, "And she's written a few books and runs a bookstore with her cat. She's simple – she's Hermione. We were in a war together – she got me to that point and through it. We decided we were done with fighting all together and came to – ironically enough – New York when relationships began to fall apart. She's done a lot for me and I've – " he sighed, sinking into the chair and glaring at the map, "I've let her go and get kidnapped. I owe her so much, and for the second time she gets hurt, I can't do anything about it."

"Hey," Steve spoke up, "She's kept up with you since you were kids, even going through a _war_ with you. That's familiar. Trust me, she'd be just as hurt if anything happened to you. She'd probably be saying the same thing too. Minus the stuff about cats."

He smiled ruefully at him as Tony nudged him with a grin, "You sound like you know her."

"Nah," he grinned and shrugged, "I know Bucky."

* * *

**New Chapter One! I kept the "I know Bucky" quote because I love it. I'll try to keep some parts from the un-fixed chapters if I like them, but more than likely not. Same basic plot, but not quite. But Darcy will come in, rest assured! **

_**CHAPTERS TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE AND SIX ARE CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION. PLEASE REFRAIN FROM TELLING ME THAT THE CHAPTERS DON'T MATCH UP. I'M WORKING ON IT.**_


	2. Incoming Video Message

**_"I'll look for him later, I expect I'll find him upstairs crying his eyes out over my mother's old bloomers or something...Of course, he might have crawled up into the airing cupboard and died...But I mustn't get my hopes up..."_**** – Sirius Black about Kreacher, _Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix_**

* * *

"Leave her for now," Ivan demanded as she once again kicked her assailant away, blood pouring from his mouth as she glared at him. He smirked, grabbing her arm and towing her up to stand, dragging her out of the room, "We're about to go and make a video."

"Like hell!" she yelled, punching him away and running towards the door until his hand reached out and he grabbed her hair, wrapping it around his fist as she gasped and was yanked back, his other hand wrapping around her throat to make her fight to breathe.

"I won't be having none of that," he frowned, towing her up to a monitor and typing away, his hand still in her hair as she frowned up at the ceiling. They were silent for a few moments until she reached out and kicked him in the stomach, making him double over and release her hair as she made another dash for the exit until his hand caught her shoulder and he slammed her onto the console, her head slamming into the keys. She was immediately stilled as he stood and glared at her before focusing his attention back onto the screen.

* * *

"My Midgardian friends!" a loud booming voice said, startling Harry and making him jump up from his seat, reaching for his wand as he stared at the tall blonde man, a smaller black haired woman by his side.

He blinked at Harry as he blinked back, the girl smiling a little at him.

"A little jumpy?" she asked as he relaxed.

"Kind of," he shrugged, sitting back down as Tony grinned and strode up to the blonde man.

"Thor! Hey, haven't seen you since you took Reindeer Games back home to face the Time-Out Corner!" he beamed as several of the Avengers rolled their eyes.

"Ahh…yes," Thor said before brightening again, "This is my Midgardian friend, Darcy Lewis! I thought it would be nice to have you meet her, and vice versa!"

"Yeah, uhhm, not really a good time, Buddy," Barton winced, rubbing the back of his neck, "Harry's friend has been kidnapped, and we're all a little worried."

"Oh," Thor said, his face falling as Darcy winced.

"I'm so sorry," she said, reaching her arms out to hug Harry before deciding against it, "How's it going? Are you close to getting them?"

"I…don't know," Harry responded, looking depressed as he winced back at her, although Tony was bouncing on his toes and nodding.

"We know who took her and we know where they are, relatively speaking," Bruce answered, "We just don't quite know the floor plan and where the guards are."

"Plus we're looking into why he'd even want her in the first place," Natasha sighed, pouting a little as she glared at her pad of paper, "And we can't even think of that."

"Umm," Tony interjected suddenly, fidgeting a little, "I think we might be about to find out. Incoming video message from Ivan. And it's live."

"Do we even want to see it?" Clint muttered as Tony allowed the video to pop up on the big screen.

Ivan's face was a sickly pale, a jagged scar running from the top right of his face, just above his ear, and running across his face to his neck and disappearing under his clothes. He was smirking, looking directly at Harry.

"Mister Potter," he said, his voice sounding rough, like he hadn't heard that he could drink anything to relieve the scratchy feeling, "A pleasure to see you."

"Where's Hermione?" he asked immediately, springing from his seat and glaring at him, "If you hurt her, I will - !"

"Shush," Ivan scolded, frowning at him, "I wasn't done speaking."

"You're not going to be able to speak unless you tell me where Hermione is!" Harry roared, Tony silently clacking away on the keys, unnoticed by Ivan.

"The girl is alive," he said dully before smirking again, "You see, Mister Potter, the reasons I have taken your friend is because you killed one of my greatest allies. The most powerful wizard I have ever met."

"I didn't kill Dumbledore!" Harry wrinkled his nose.

Ivan glared at him, "I was speaking of the Dark Lord."

"Tom?" he snorted, rolling his eyes, "He was about as powerful as any average wizard."

"He had a mind far surpassing others, a strength unknown," Ivan sneered at Harry, his face contorting even more, "And you killed him."

"Why do you need the girl, then?" Steve questioned.

Ivan glanced at him briefly before smirking back at Harry, "Your friend has shown very great traits that I could use."

"She'll never work for you," Harry glared.

"I know that," Ivan clipped, "Why do you think I'm going to take her magic, her strengths, and give them all to me?"

Harry and the others gaped, although his eyes were wide and his jaw nearly touching the ground before he yelled out, "That'll kill her!"

"Such a shame," he sighed, holding up a fist and playing with what looked like dark, mistreated ends of a frayed rope, "She is rather smart. Hasn't been raped yet!"

Harry shakily sat down, watching as Ivan held his fist higher, the rope ends turning out to be the end of Hermione's hair as he grabbed her chin with his free hand and showed her face to them. She had a split lip, bruises along her jaw, eyebrow and cheekbone, a cut on her forehead near her hairline spilling blood. Her shoulders were bare, making Harry even sicker to his stomach for a moment, as he knew she'd been wearing a jacket and a t-shirt, until a stretch of dingy white was brought into view, covering her chest. He prayed it was hers.

Her eyelids fluttered open and she groaned, wincing at the light the screen emitted, "Bloody bastard."

"Hermione, we're coming to get you, don't worry, okay?" Harry told her, his voice a few octaves higher in stress.

"Don't lie to the girl, she – " Ivan began before Hermione cut him off.

"You didn't _dare_ call Ronald, did you?" she glared weakly, although her focus was off on Thor, "Harry, if he comes bursting through the door, I swear to _Merlin_ I _will_ kill him, regardless of my state!"

"Not him, ahh – " Harry fidgeted.

"Hi, we're the Avengers, we're going to avenge you, okay?" Clint grinned brightly at her as Natasha rolled her eyes, Hermione shaking her head lightly and blinking, finally seeing them.

"And don't worry – Nick Fury will be hearing from me very soon as well," Ivan smirked before the screen went blank, Tony jumping up from his seat and hitting a key, a map popping up where Ivan used to be.

"I've hacked into his security system completely now, I know where all the guards are stationed and I've shut the alarms off," Tony grinned madly, "Now who here volunteers to go and save the damsel in distress?"

"I'll go," Harry stood.

"Ahh," Darcy interjected with a wince, "That might not be the best idea."

Harry looked at her as if she'd just become Nearly Headless Darcy for a moment, "What?"

"Well, he hasn't gotten her magic _yet_, so why else would he hold off if he was waiting on you? Double the power," she shrugged before shrinking back against the wall, holding her bag, "Just a thought."

Harry gaped at her before gaping at Tony, "Shit."

"Yup," Tony pursed his lips before pointing his pen at Steve, "I nominate you, Star Spangle! And…Point Break! C'mon down!"

"Do you nickname everybody?" Harry asked dully as he sat back down, Darcy pulling up a chair at the table as Steve stood.

"Pretty much! Okay, so Natasha and Katniss are going to have your backs, Bruce and I are going to keep an eye on you on the surveillance footage, and Darcy is going to mend Harry's broken heart."

"I don't have a broken heart," Harry snorted as Darcy glared at Tony before grinning back at Harry.

"We'll be the cheerleaders!" she said brightly before waving invisible pom-poms, "Rah rah ree, kick 'em in the knee! Rah rah rass, kick 'em in the - !"

"Darcy!" Clint interjected with a grin as she faltered.

" – Other knee!" Darcy finished as Harry started to smile at her. She straightened, frowning back at the screen, "You know, I've learned not to trust too many bald guys with facial deformities and strange accents."

Harry grinned brightly at her, glad that his "sister" would soon be safe, "Same here."

* * *

"_Go left. Go left. No, your _other_ left!_"

"My left and your left are entirely different right now!" Steve hissed into his earpiece with a glare as Thor checked a corner and nodded when it was clear.

"_My left is clearly the better left in this arrangement_," Tony said. There was a sigh on the other end as somebody typed something until Bruce spoke up.

"_Steve, turn to your right_."

"Thank you."

"_Keep going down that hall, take a left, go down the stairs, there'll be more guards. Once you take them out, there'll be a room at the end of the hall. According to the readings, she should be in there. Once you get her, get out of there _fast_. Get her back to us, we'll fix her injuries._"

"_And, ahh, if you could, could you bring some tacos?_" There was a dull thump, making him hiss and grumble at Darcy, "_Fine, fine, no tacos._"

"_Good luck, guys,_" Darcy said, using Tony or Bruce's earpiece, "_Stay safe, or at least try to. Don't let them hurt her._"

"Right," Steve nodded, although he wasn't sure if they could see it or not, "Got it."

"_Oh, shit, gotta go, Fury's here, we don't have authorization for any of this._"

"We _what?_" Steve straightened, his eyes wide as he stared down the empty hallway, wondering how they even slipped by without Fury noticing until Thor nudged him and steered him along. Once they reached the hallway, they blinked at the groaning guards lying on the floor, both of them looking between each other in confusion.

"I thought he meant guards to defeat, not guards who were already defeated," Thor muttered, nudging away one of the men with his foot.

"Are we missing something here?" Steve asked, "Didn't he say there were – "

A loud scream broke him off, him and Thor running towards the door, the Norse god smashing his hammer through it, taking out one of the guards that were holding her back, Steve grabbing another man's hair and pulling him away from her as Thor slammed the third guard into the wall and knocked him out. Steve ducked as the man swung at him, easily using his leg to knock his feet out from under him and sending him to the floor. Thor dully put Mjölnir on his stomach, making him struggle to get out from underneath and have the air rush out of his lungs.

Steve turned to her as she winced up at him, sitting back on her hands with difficulty. He kneeled down to her, brushing hair away from her to look at her injuries, "Are you alright?"

"You have excellent timing," she told him breathlessly, managing a small smile, "You were with Harry, in the video."

"Yeah, we know Harry," he said as he strapped his shield on his back, looking over her to find the best place to put his hands when he picked her up.

"I thought I'd dreamt it, that you all were there," she said, "Thank you."

He looked back at her and smiled, reaching over to pick her up gently as she shifted and winced, "No problem. How about we get you out of here?"

"Thank you," she repeated as Thor took Mjölnir off the guard and kicked him in the head, scooting him away from the door as the three exited, "There's a door on this level, turn right and it's there."

"Now how come we didn't know about that?" Steve questioned, mentally glaring at Tony.

"It's not on any plans, and the cameras aren't in great angles to see it," she winced, shifting a little as she wrapped her arms around his neck, "I've got no idea where he is."

"Ivan?" he asked, shaking his head when she nodded, "He's not important right now."

"_Oh my god, is he flirting with her?_" Clint hissed excitedly, probably to Natasha, "_Like, really bad flirting, but is he?_"

"_Oh my god, Clint, stop ruining it for him!_" Natasha hissed back as Thor contained his chuckles and Steve tried to hold back the blush, _"He doesn't flirt that often, don't criticize him!"_

"_You two are so cute together too,_" Tony cooed, "_Please get married._"

"I thought Director Fury was reprimanding you?" Thor asked, making Hermione turn and blink at him as they exited the building.

"_He was, but then Darcy and Harry distracted him_," Bruce answered dully, "_Something about a Weasley and a Whizbang that they just _had_ to show him_."

"What's a Whizbang?" Steve asked him, making Hermione tense a little.

"It's a wizard firework – how do you know about a Whizbang?" she asked.

"Harry and Darcy set one off to distract Fury," he answered as Clint and Natasha dropped down from a tree across the street, running across to them with various weapons in their arms.

"What's a 'Darcy'?" she blinked, "Like, Mister Darcy?"

"What?" he blinked back at her.

"Aha," Clint laughed, grinning, "No. C'mon, we'll get to the Helicarrier and fix you up."

"What's a Helicarrier?" she asked as they made their way away from the building.

"It's a floating metal thing," Clint answered as he reached behind him and shot an arrow without looking, Hermione looking over Steve's shoulder with arched eyebrows as part of the building exploded, the rest catching fire. "Kind of like a spaceship, but not that high."

"He wasn't in there, you know," she blinked at him, "If you didn't find him, he wasn't there."

"We know," Natasha shrugged, "But those asses who hurt you were."

"Thank you," Hermione said yet again.

"Nah, don't mention it," Clint grinned at her, "I just love shooting arrows and blowing stuff up."

She laughed, relaxing against Steve again as they joked and made her feel safe again.

* * *

**That was kind of different from the original, but I kept a few things in. And was Steve flirting or not? You can decide. I don't think he was, it was probably just an accident, but whatever. "Eye of the beholder" and whatnot.**

**_CHAPTERS THREE, FOUR, FIVE AND SIX ARE CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION. *puts on hard-hat*_**


	3. Package Received

**_"He can run faster than Severus Snape confronted with shampoo." – Fred Weasley, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_**

* * *

"I'll go and find you something to wear," Natasha said as they walked towards the lab, Hermione walking slowly and watching her feet, although she waved off any help the boys tried to offer her. "Can magic heal you?"

"Generally speaking, it should," Hermione hissed, wincing a little and waving off Steve once more, "Unless they used something laced with dark magic on me, I should be fine in an hour or two."

"Is it like a spell or something, or do we need to go and get it?" Clint asked.

"Spells should work, although if push comes to shove I can use Muggle remedies."

"Right, those Muggles," Clint said uncertainly, sharing a glance with Steve, who shrugged back at him. Natasha nodded and went to where her room was located to find her something to wear.

"If I may ask, why do you continue to harm yourself by walking when you could you're your injuries now?" Thor asked curiously.

She winced, "Ahh, because I lost my wand."

"Ohh," Clint winced too, "And I blew up the thing…wow. Sorry."

"Ehh," she shrugged back, "I could write to Ollivander, he might be able to either make me a new one or I'll be able to go down there and find one."

"Okay," Clint shrugged, still not understanding all of the terms she used.

"I'm sorry," she smiled up at them, "Muggles are non-magical people. Ollivander is the wand maker. Anything else I said that could be confusing?"

"We'll let you know if there are," Clint grinned.

She nodded back before hissing and nearly face-planting into the ground, but Steve caught her before she could fall. She winced and grabbed the wall, sliding down it as the three hovered over her worriedly. "Merlin's beard, that hurt."

"Is that like 'holy shit'?" Clint asked.

"In a sense," she tried to smile and let out a huff of air. "How's about somebody just goes and gets Harry for me? Or his wand, I might be able to do this. I'll just wait here."

"I'll do it – be right back," Clint said before jogging down the hall, leaving Steve to slide down next to her, looking over the cuts and bruises on her face.

"Yes, Captain Rogers, I know I look beat up," she smiled, making him wince and blink at her, "But I'm fine. I think."

"How badly did those men hurt you?" Thor questioned.

She sighed and leaned her head against the wall, shutting her eyes with a frown, "They've hit me, kicked me, tried to rape me…."

There was a heavy silence before Steve asked her, "How badly did you hurt them?"

She smiled at him, "I've hit them, kicked them, bitten them…Great workout, that."

Steve chuckled as Harry and Clint ran up to her, Bruce, Tony and Darcy walking along as well as Natasha brought along some clothes.

"Hermione!" Harry said happily, kneeling in front of her and hugging her.

"Harry, you're alright," she muffled into his shirt, making him blink and pull back to look at her.

"_I'm_ alright?" he arched an eyebrow at her, "You were kidnapped and tortured and you've been wondering whether I was alright or not?"

She shrugged, smiling at him, "Old habits die hard."

He snorted and shook his head at her, offering his wand, "You're barmy."

"Only because I had an overexposure to you as we grew up," she sighed as she stretched out a leg and healed the cuts and bruises there, "To think, if I hadn't had met you I'd be relatively normal by now."

"I like how you said 'relatively,' because you'll never be completely normal," he grinned at her as she shot him a frown before turning to work on the other leg.

Steve stood, smirking at Tony, "You didn't see the door?"

"It was in a shadow!" Tony exclaimed.

"You didn't see the door?" Darcy blinked at him.

"The cameras aren't in the best angle to see it, okay?" he huffed.

"Right, but you still didn't see it," Clint teased as he turned and glared at him.

"Hermione, when you're ready, I can show you where to get changed," Natasha interrupted with a glare at the three.

"Hermione…" Bruce began, looking at her curiously, "Hermione Granger?"

"Yes?" she looked up at him and blinked.

"What's…your middle name?"

"Jean," she answered slowly.

Bruce gaped and pointed at her, "You! You're 'H. J. Granger!' You wrote 'Time and Other Wibbly-Wobbly Things'!"

"I am a Doctor Who fan, yes," she arched an eyebrow at him and grinned, "Why?"

"You're a – well…" he faltered before ruffling up his hair, "You're a woman."

"Took Ron four years to figure that out," she muttered before nodding as she set to work on her arms, "Yes, I'm a woman. Many people can't pronounce 'Hermione,' so I just used my initials. I actually was invited to a party for successful men."

"Yeah, I know, I was there – I was wondering who the woman was and I just realized you look _really _familiar!"

"Oh – well hello again!" she smiled, handing Harry his wand back and taking a deep breath to get ready to stand when Steve offered her his hand. She released the breath and smiled at him, letting him help her stand. She let go of his hand and looked down at her feet, waiting for something to flare up in pain. When nothing did, she raised her head and smiled at him.

"Thank you," she said before turning to Natasha, "You mentioned something about actual clothing?"

"Well, more like yoga pants and a shirt, but it covers more than that," she smirked, Hermione chuckling and nodding and following her down the hall.

"Okay, so is everybody really science-y here, or is that just a majority of the people?" Darcy asked Thor, who chuckled and ruffled up her hair.

"I think it's just me and Harry, unless you end up having a Ph.D. in something," Steve shrugged at him.

"The only reason I passed school was because of Hermione," Harry laughed.

"STARK! BANNER! GET YOUR ASSES IN HERE!" Fury roared, making the group jump and look at each other before creeping along behind Tony and Bruce.

"Ahh, yes, Director Fury?" Bruce asked, rubbing the back of his neck guiltily as Tony rocked back and forth on his heels.

"Care to explain to me why you've been doing unauthorized work?" he asked.

"Well it takes so long to get authorized, and she needed help," Tony shrugged.

"That is beside the point – you sent out agents without authorization – do you know how much trouble we're gonna be in if the Council finds out?"

"There's a guy out there who wants revenge from Harry, Hermione and _you_, Director," Steve spoke up, "Maybe this isn't one for the Council to know about?"

"Yeah, this can be like…volunteer work," Tony grinned, "This can be your hobby, as well as ours. Solving mysteries and crimes – we'll be like Nancy Drew."

"I remember those," Steve blinked, "Are they still around?"

"More or less – but that's beside the point," Bruce coughed as Fury began to frown at them, "Point is, we're doing good, just…under the Council's radar. Surely if what we're doing meets your requirements on safety and procedure, that can compensate for the lack of paperwork?"

"And we _know_ how much you hate paperwork," Tony grinned, still rocking on his heels.

Fury looked between them for a long, silent moment before he arched an eyebrow, "Why do you feel compelled to help them so much? You barely know them."

They blinked and realized they couldn't find an answer to that. Clint shrugged and stepped out, ruffling up his hair.

"She was taken, she was scared, she needed help," he answered, "We had to. We would've felt responsible if we just left her there."

"It is weird, though," Bruce muttered, "Before we fought Loki, we wouldn't work together, after it, we still knew the same amount of each other as before, we were just…closer. Going through hard things together and pulling through just gets you closer to people."

"I barely know any of you," Harry shrugged, "But we're…close-ish. It's weird – it was like that for us in the war, too."

"Trust is a very peculiar thing," Hermione stated from the doorway, startling the others as they turned around towards her, watching her walk slowly around them. "When actors go to work, they have to trust the others to help them make the show great. They build bonds and get closer. But you guys – you trust each other to have your back, to make sure you're safe, to make sure you get out alive. Trust is actually very brilliant." She stood in front of Director Fury and smiled, offering her hand. "Hello, I'm Hermione Granger, I wanted to thank you and your team for saving me."

He gave a smile and shook her hand, "No problem. How are you feeling?"

"Sore, but it's not like I haven't dealt with it before," she shrugged.

Harry snorted softly, trying to hide his grin at his friend. She looked ready for bed, in a t-shirt and yoga pants, her feet still bare with her toes wiggling along the floor, her hair flying about everywhere, although she still made a point to thank the scariest looking man in the room for saving her life.

"So – you're some scientist?" Tony questioned, beginning to circle her, surveying her with his chin in his hand.

"No, I write about my theories and publish them," she corrected, folding her hands behind her back and allowing him to continue his inspection. "For some reason they make sense to other people."

"So what do you really do?" Bruce asked, arching an eyebrow at her.

"I write, and when I'm not writing, I'm selling books in my bookshop," she answered with a smile, "It keeps me busy. I hate letting my mind wander."

"Ever written any fiction books?" Tony asked, "I bet you wrote something about all that you've been through in the magical world, right?"

She gave a laugh, "I have written fiction, still am, actually, but not anything about our world. I'd get in quite a lot of trouble if I did."

"If you don't mind me asking, you said something about a war?" Steve spoke up, making her turn her gaze on him and tilt her head, blinking politely at him. "How old were you again?"

"Seventeen," she said with a soft sigh, although she managed a smile, "You were in the second World War, correct? Or did I get my facts wrong?"

He repressed a blush, but gave a sheepish grin anyway, "Ahh, yes, ma'am. Nazis, Schmidt – I punched out Hitler a few hundred times."

She laughed, grinning at him, "Not a lot of people can say that and be completely honest."

He shrugged, not finding anything else to say, and instead smiled at her.

"Umm, this is a nice conversation and everything, but I have a question," Natasha interrupted.

"Yes, like how do we find the man who requests revenge from both Fury and Potter?" Thor asked.

"Oh, good question, but that wasn't what I was going to ask," Natasha blinked.

"What were you going to ask, then?" Clint asked.

"Where are we stuffing Darcy, Hermione, and Harry?" she shrugged, "We can't really send them back home – Roshbovine knows where Hermione lives, probably knows how to get Harry and saw Darcy before on the screen. They won't be safe if we shove them out onto the street."

"Natasha, how do you feel about roommates?" Tony asked with a grin.

She narrowed her eyes, "It can be managed if that's the case."

"Oh just point me to a corner – I'll sleep anywhere, I'm fine," Hermione waved away any worries.

"Actually, do you have a few supply closets or something that you don't need?" Harry asked Fury.

"You – you want to sleep in a closet?" Bruce blinked.

"Again?" Hermione teased, making Harry dully swat out at her hair.

"I can use magic to put bedrooms in them," he explained.

"I'm confused on the 'again,'" Clint muttered to Hermione, who promised to tell him later.

"Man, I feel sorry for the janitors," Darcy said, following Harry and Fury out of the room, "Open the door, expecting a few brooms and stuff, but _nope!_ That's traumatizing."

"But it's S.H.I.E.L.D," Natasha shrugged, making her laugh.

* * *

**I forget how many times Steve punched Hitler and Google wouldn't give me a straight answer. And I think he'd call Hermione "ma'am" as many times as she'd let him get away with it. Which shouldn't be too long until she insists that he stop.**

**Chapters four, five, six and seven are under construction as of right now. I'm tired and don't feel like mentally screaming, so sorry. (I should really get a picture and fix whatever chapter I'm working on so you'll know what's fixed and what's not. Okay great, I'll go do that.)**


	4. Technical Difficulties

**"_He can run faster than Severus Snape confronted with shampoo."_ – Fred Weasley, _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_**

* * *

"Can't you get the audio hooked in?"

"I'm trying – you're lucky we've got video though."

"We don't really need it – just guess what they're saying! 'I'm Harry Potter, pudding, doorknob, hello!'"

"Isn't there a way to get the transcript of what they're saying on there? That's what I do when my TV busts."

"That's for TV shows, though."

"I am very confused," Thor muttered to Steve, who nodded back.

"Just…kick it," Clint offered, getting offended looks from Tony and Bruce, "Or not. That's cool too."

"Fury's waving his arms like that," Tony hissed, wincing at the screen, "That isn't good at all."

"They look so sad," Darcy pet the screen, pouting, "Don't be sad, Tiny Harry and Tiny Hermione! We'll protect you!"

"What is he _saying?_" Bruce demanded, frowning at the screen, "I really need to pick up lip reading."

"It looks like…'dangerous,'…'no good can come from…,'…'- out of here,'" Natasha winced and pulled away as everybody shared saddened looks. They all screamed when Fury's voice suddenly erupted from the screen, leaping back as Thor wielded his hammer and Clint aimed an arrow at the screen. They all blinked at one another for their embarrassing moment before turning back to the screen.

"Look, Director, I understand where you're coming from," Harry spoke up, "And I agree with you completely."

"We'll go," Hermione said, "Voluntarily, too, so not to cause unneeded trouble."

"No," Tony and Darcy cried out, her arms outstretched as they pouted, "Don't leave!"

"Could you drop me off, Harry?" Hermione asked, wincing and shrugging, "I rather don't have my wand."

"Of course – like I'd let you out of my sight now," Harry frowned, grabbing her arm and nodding to Fury, who nodded back before the two disappeared with a pop.

"Sir," Maria spoke up, folder in her arms, "Perhaps you should tell the team now?"

"Might as well," he shrugged, marching his way to the conference room, where everybody was scrambling to unhook the screens from the security cameras. They managed to make the screen blank twelve seconds before he walked through the door, catapulting themselves into seats and nodding and looking as if they'd been speaking this whole time.

"Fury," Tony nodded as Fury crossed his arms over his chest and glared at him, "Need anything?"

"You need to stop hacking into SHIELD's computers, Stark," he frowned before turning to Bruce, "Same to you as well."

"We haven't been hacking!" Bruce cried, pouting as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"It's more like snooping – and everybody loves Snoopy," Tony smirked.

"I liked Woodstock, actually," Clint said, high-fiving Darcy when the girl offered her palm.

Director Fury rolled his eye at them, huffing, "Go get some sleep, you've got a lot of work to do tomorrow."

"Aye-aye, Sarge!" Tony saluted as Steve dully arched an eyebrow at him, "Well I couldn't call him 'Captain' – that's _your_ nickname!"

He rolled his eyes and stood, rubbing the back of his neck as he walked towards the door, "I'm going to go to sleep. It has been a _very_ long day."

"I miss them," he heard Darcy say before the door shut, making him sigh and nod in agreement.

* * *

**I…**

**Regret….**

**_Nothing._**

**Also, I have no idea why it took so long to update. I think I might've forgotten that I didn't, 'cause I had the doc uploaded and everything. *shrugs***


	5. Error Scan

**_"Mister Stark, we need to talk." "You have reached the life model decoy of Tony Stark, please leave a message." "This is urgent." "Then leave it urgently. …Security breach! That's on you." "Mister Stark." "Phil! Come in." "Phil? Uh, his first name is Agent."_**** – Agent Phil Coulson, Tony Stark and Pepper Potts, _Avengers_**

* * *

"Steve! Steve! Hey, Captain! Mister Rogers! Sir! Wake _up_!" a fist punched his door as he finally lifted his head from his pillow, opening the door and finding a rather irritated Darcy looking up at him.

"Darcy? What's wrong?" he asked, rubbing his eye with the heel of his hand.

She brightened, "You need to go train."

"But I just – "

"_It is not optional_," she glared before running away down the hall with a happy little scream. He sighed and shook his head, getting dressed and brushing his teeth before walking in the same direction she'd gone. Darcy, Tony and Bruce were all standing in the doorway, Thor behind them with a clear view over their heads. Bruce turned and saw him, quickly waving him to go and see.

He walked up, blinking when he saw Harry hanging upside down from a beam with Barton, who was instructing him how to aim when upside down. Natasha was working with Hermione, showing her how to hold her stance when attacking somebody.

"They're back?" he whispered to the others.

"Natasha read it wrong," Tony offered, making the woman stop and glare at him.

"I didn't _readit wrong_," she growled as Hermione waved at them, "We _all_ misinterpreted it."

Barton snorted as he flipped over and dropped down to his feet, leaving Harry swinging up there, "Of course you did, Tasha."

She glared at him, but he only grinned wider.

"Captain, I'd like to introduce you to the newest members of the Avengers – Harry James Potter and Hermione Jean Granger," Tony bowed as they stepped through the door, Hermione rolling her eyes and smiling up at Steve.

"Way to middle name us, Mate," Harry frowned before grinning as he stood back up, stooping down to pick up his glasses and wand.

"Harry, can I see that for a bit?" Hermione asked, smiling when he offered his wand, "Thank you."

"Hey, at least you asked for mine," he grinned, "I kind of stole yours."

"Well, I broke it."

"You didn't break it," he sighed as she frowned at him, "I don't even remember what happened to it, but it's fine now, so who cares?"

She rolled her eyes at him, muttering something and smiling when she grabbed the stretch of gauze from the tip of the wand, ripping it off and handing him his wand back as she lifted her arm up to quickly wrap it, nobody getting a chance to see what she was really wrapping as she smiled at them.

"So, are we any further on getting back at Ivan?" she asked, tilting her head.

"We are planning and attempting to get authorization from Fury and the Council, as we are supposed to as it is following the rules and regulations that we are meant to follow," Tony answered dully, "We're getting there. _Slowly_."

"But it won't matter much to you until you get your wand back," Harry told her as she began to glare at him, "Now Hermione, don't give me that look. I know you're perfectly capable of taking down anybody with or without your wand, but for sanity's sake, I just want you to be safe."

"Harry James Potter, I am not some little first year who – "

"Hey, you looked out for me for years and years and years and _years_," he interrupted, "It's my turn now, deal with it."

"No I will not!" she huffed, "Harry, it was me, not you, you don't - !" She stopped, glaring at him before walking away and muttering to herself, everybody looking at her curiously until Darcy bounded after her.

"Hey!" she yelped, making her stop and wait for her to catch up, "What's wrong?"

"Ohh, nothing," she sighed, running a hand through her hair, "Just been kidnapped, want revenge, Harry won't let me, we're fighting about it. No big deal."

"I feel like it's a little more than that," Darcy hummed, "From what Harry's told me, you seem like one who isn't too rash about things, like you think things through all the way. Unless something really bad happened that you aren't telling us about."

Hermione stopped in the hallway, looking at this girl and opening her mouth to argue until she stopped and whimpered, sliding down the wall and looking up at her futilely, "I was nearly raped. It was a miracle I wasn't. Being that scared and that vulnerable, I…I'd been in that position once before. Not the rape part, that part's entirely new, but being tortured and everything…You want the person who did that to you gone so you have a – albeit, very false – loose sense of security. And Harry – Merlin love him – he doesn't _get_ that, not really. It's terrifying and I just…."

Darcy slid down the wall next to her, patting her knee, "When I was younger, my mom and I walked in on our apartment being robbed. I had nightmares for ages. I was angry at the guy – angry that he'd broken into our home, tried to steal our things, and made me barricade my bedroom door and window at night. So I get it, a little – you'll do anything to feel protected, whether it's buying an alarm system or a guard dog or taking out the guy who made you scared."

Hermione blinked, smiling back at her, "Thank you."

"Plus, if the jerk had my wand, I'd want it back too," she sniffed, standing and grinning at her as she offered a hand, "I can only imagine how _kickass_ it is fighting with one of those."

"I must admit, it's pretty neat," she grinned back, walking down the hallway with her, "D'you know of any good bands? My music selection is rather limited."

"Oh, well let's see…."

* * *

***dances***


	6. Attempt One

**Before we get to that awesome quote (is it Harry Potter this time or Avengers? I think it's HP) I want to tell you that I'm planning to re-do this story one chapter at a time. Which is okay because there's only like pfft what six chapters? So I want to add in more detail and stuff. If you ever see one more chapter (what freaking number is this one I don't even know) then I have finished with the updates. Or whatever. Just check back often-ish. **

**_"Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?"_**** – Albus Dumbledore, _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_**

* * *

"How can you do that without your wand?" Steve asked, leaning against the counter as she frowned into the pot, throwing in some kinds of leaves.

"Potion-brewing and wandwork are two entirely different parts of magic," she answered with a shrug as Harry and Darcy walked in, stopping and peering over to watch her. "Like what Harry and I do and everyday ordinary magic are still magic but different."

"Everyday ordinary magic?" Harry echoed with a grin beginning to form, "I'm not familiar with that one."

"Like…winning the lottery or – or falling in love or…." She pursed her lips and thought before shrugging, finding that enough evidence.

"Alright, I'll give you falling in love, but how is winning the lottery magic?"

"If you're homeless – "

"In what situation would I be homeless?"

"Hypothetically speaking, Harry."

"Alright, hypothetically – why would I be homeless?"

"Maybe you spent all of your money on candy or something," Darcy shrugged with a grin.

"Harry, just – just stop, okay," she reached her hand out and swatted his arm, glaring at him as he grinned cheekily at her before looking back into the pot.

"What're you making?" he asked.

"Attempting to make a Muggle version of Felix Felicis."

"I'm sorry, two terms I didn't understand," Steve winced, "What's a Muggle and who is Felix?"

"A Muggle is a non-magical person, and Felix Felicis is the name of a potion that enhances the luck of the drinker," Hermione offered with a smile before sighing and running a hand through her hair, "I don't think it's working."

"Could be because you're using garlic," Harry hummed as he picked up the jar of the powder and sniffed it, "Hey, you think Snape hated garlic? He was practically a vampire."

"Harry James Potter!" Hermione gasped as he laughed at her, "Is that any way to speak about him?"

"He would've laughed," he pouted as she dully arched an eyebrow at him, "On the inside. Admit it, he had a sense of humor."

"Yes, it was absolutely thrilling," she deadpanned before snorting and going back to her pot.

"He was our Potions professor," Harry told Darcy and Steve as Tony walked in. "Greasy hair, beak-like nose, dark robes, always spoke in a monotone. Real fun guy!"

"Are you making soup?" Tony asked Hermione as he looked over her shoulder.

She groaned and picked up the pot, dumping it down the sink.

"I was planning to eat that!" Tony cried out with a glare at her as she set it in the sink and began filling it up with water to clean it.

"Harry, do you think you can run to Diagon Alley and get me potion ingredients from the Apothecary?" she asked, biting her lip as he looked at her skeptically, "You can use some of the Polyjuice potion, I think I left a bit in my apartment."

"What's a Diagon?" Darcy asked, looking between Tony and Steve as they looked blankly at the other two.

"Diagon Alley is…" Harry began before smiling, "Hey, come with me and see for yourself."

"Really?" Darcy asked excitedly.

"Yeah, sure, just have to stop off at Hermione's flat," Harry shrugged as Darcy began to bounce around.

"Harry, no showing out," Hermione frowned at him as they began to make their way to the door.

Harry snorted, frowning at her, "Believe me, that close to him? I am not getting noticed. It'd be bloody awkward. Plus, I dunno if I can't not hit him."

"Try, because if I ever see him again that'll be my job," Hermione smirked as he chuckled.

"Bad ex?" Tony asked, working open a jar and peering inside of it.

She sighed, pouting, "Like you wouldn't believe."

"What'd he do?" Steve asked, pouring soup down into the pot.

"Oh, cheated on me repeatedly with a brainless slag, then told me that I was plain," she said mildly with a shrug, "Fame does stupid things to people."

"Hmm," Tony hummed, "If he was corrupted that easily, I doubt it would've lasted long anyway."

She eyed him, "You sound exactly like Malfoy. He was my business partner – used to torture me in school, but we grew up. Said the exact same thing when I quit my job to move to the States. That was the last thing he ever said to me too."

"Sounds like a fun guy," Tony grinned, dipping a finger in the jar and sniffing it as she arched an eyebrow at him.

"Might not want to eat that," she instructed.

"Why not?"

"It's melted rat liver."

"OH MY GOD!" Tony yelped, rushing to the sink as she began to laugh with Steve.

"Was it really?" he asked as Tony quickly washed it off.

"No," she giggled, making him grin, "It was sorghum."

* * *

**LET THE REVAMPING BEGIN! *runs off***


End file.
